I woke in the usual way, as if this morning is like any other. I went through my routine. Made my way to the car. Drove into the city. All quite ordinary. Traffic was fine. I’m sipping my coffee now, and watching the darkness before dawn slowly evolving through the dim twilight to the blue-gray of daybreak. It’s a rainy morning. Instead of blue skies beyond these windows, the day slowly becomes more gray, less dim.

I drink my coffee, acutely aware that there is one less reader of these words in the world, this morning. I’m saddened by that, less because the words aren’t read, than because of the loss, itself. My dear friend – one of my dearest, deepest, and longest-standing friendships of this mortal life – let go of this mortal existence with all its pain and heartbreak, joys and wonders, yesterday afternoon. I got the call yesterday, just as I was arriving home, betwixt taking the off-ramp into the small town I live in, and stopping by the store for things that seemed necessary at the time.

I took time for tears, and to alert my Traveling Partner, before I went into the store. I sat in my car weeping without restraint or concern about being seen, until I could catch my breath. My Traveling Partner offered me comfort in messages, and held me when I arrived home. My dear friend died surrounded by loving family I was told, and that gives me some comfort. (I guess she was ready – she didn’t wait long once the decisions were made, and she definitely knew where things stood and seemed okay with it, when we spoke over the the course of my visit.) Still… it’s hard to “let go”, and I cling to the recollections of past conversations and shared moments, as humans tend to do. For a moment, tears well up in my eyes again, and I look out into the sky above the city and find myself peculiarly grateful for this sullen gray morning which offers no delightful sunrise view that I might regret being unable to share with her, now. Fitting. “Nothing to see here. Move along, folks.”

…Slow tears slide down my face, ignored…

I sit quietly, thinking my solitary thoughts, sipping my coffee, and feeling the tears fall. Grief passes, I know. “The way out is through.” There’s no point trying to pretend I am made of a block of stone; this is a very human experience. I breathe. Exhale. Relax. I feel calm, just a bit sorrowful, and considering what my dear friend was to me for all these years, that seems only reasonable. I think about my Granny. I still shed occasional tears over her loss, too. My mother? Yes, her, too. Honest tears. These connections are painful to sever. The feeling of loss is genuine. I don’t bother to try to escape the emotions.

The sky continues to lighten. A new day. A new beginning. A strange new world with one less cherished friend in it. The streets don’t look any different, slick with rain, as early morning traffic slowly fills the choicest parking spaces. I take a breath and sigh out loud, sip my coffee, and prepare to begin again.